Husband, husbandry

This is one of those many words in English that can be misleading. Husbandry has nothing to do with husband, at least not in the present-day context. However, if you look at the origin of both words, you can find a link between the two.

Originally, husband only meant the male head of a house; married, widowed or single. It was only from very late 13th century that it came to mean as a man married to a woman.

Husband is believed to have come from hus = house; and bondi = occupier of land or house, tiller of soil.

Husbandry evolved from there, to mean cultivation and management of crops, animals, or farms in general. 'Animal Husbandry' is a common usage. India has an Animal Husbandry Minister in government. Probably other nations too.

The word husband gradually came to mean as the main, if not the sole, provider of a family. Of course, today, the word means neither someone who is wedded only to a woman nor someone who is the sole or main provider of a family.

Husband can also mean to use resources economically, or someone who uses resources economically. (How many husbands actually use resources economically, is open to debate.)

There are a couple of other interesting related words:

Husbandable, means suitable for husbandry or cultivation.

Husbandage, is the money paid to the manager (or husband) of a ship.

(This blog entry is a part of the "Blogging from A to Z Challenge April 2018")